Blog: Equality in the supply chain

Women already play a large part at a number of successful businesses, and at Hermes the company is aiming to create a level playing field for all.  

In the UK there are a large number of successful female business leaders, such as Laura Wade-Gery at Marks & Spencer (formerly of Tesco) and Carolyn McCall who is CEO at easyJet, who will help to give future generations of women the confidence to aim higher than ever before.

You can also place Hilary Devey into this bracket, who we were lucky to have at last year’s Hermes Research event. Her story of overcoming hardship through plain hard work was truly inspirational and she is a formidable character in the business world. At this year’s event we have Jacqueline Gold,chief executive of the Gold Group International companies Ann Summers and Knickerbox, who I have no doubt will be equally captivating.

My own career in this industry began in 1987, when I joined The Otto Group as a graduate and I became CEO of Hermes UK in 2004. As a Yorkshire lass, born and bred, I am tremendously proud to spearhead a successful and innovative UK business headquartered in Leeds.

Women hold a third of the main board positions at Hermes UK. In addition, 25% of all senior management positions are females, as are more than 60% of our field team leaders. In terms of the supply chain sector, women are extremely well represented at Hermes and the company is above the industry norm.

We have also recently welcomed Clare Bottle to Hermes who has taken up the position of head of courier service. Clare brings more than 20 years of industry experience to the team, previously working as national logistics manager at Lafarge Tarmac. Clare is also vice-chair of Women in Logistics UK and a trustee of Transaid. She will bring a wealth of knowledge to the table and her expertise will be a great benefit to our clients.

Our aim is to create a level playing field within the business, giving equal opportunity for both genders to play a vital role in the company’s success. We recognise diversity across the business and as a result we have a workforce made up of experienced leaders and ambitious career-focused executives, who come from a variety of backgrounds.

Huge emphasis is placed on the personal development and progression of our staff and we are seeing many talented, exciting and ambitious female and male staff members emerge as future business leaders. The stage is set for our people to play an even greater role in defining and innovating this constantly evolving industry.

• Carole Woodhead is CEO at Hermes